Former President of PERMIM (1976-1988)
1. GENESIS OF PERMIM
There was a bread vendor in Taiping. He was a simple man, not of great means. But he had
the interests of the community at heart. He had long felt that there ought to be an umbrella
organization for the community in this country. For some years he had written several
articles in the Tamil language papers in the country about the need for such a body and
talked to various people he thought might embrace the proposal. Like many such proposals
made by persons who are not considered to be consequential by the well-off members of the
community it went unheeded by anyone for many years. But he kept on at it, writing and
speaking to others who might take up the proposal – that was all that was within his limited
power to do. His name was A.E. Mohamed Ibrahim and he wrote under the pen name of
“Thirukim”.
Finally, after the formation of the Muslim Progressive Association, Taiping the idea was taken
up by that Association in the late 1960s. During those years I was at the University of
Singapore so I have no direct knowledge of the matter. I should not, therefore, venture to
write about the details of how the proposal was taken up by the Association. My friend
Mohamed Iqbal who had returned from Brinsford, UK as a trained teacher taught school in
Kuala Kurau, Perak and had his home in Taiping. I came to know that he was involved in the
initial stages of the formation of PERMIM but the task of registering the body was
subsequently taken over by the Selangor Indian Muslim Association, of which Tan Sri Dato’
S.O.K. Ubaidulla was then President, and which operated from the Indian Muslim Mosque in
Jalan Masjid India, Kuala Lumpur.
After the federation was registered under the name of “Persekutuan Muslimin Indo-Malaysia,
Malaysia” (PERMIM), preparations were under way to have the inaugural meeting of
PERMIM. I was asked by Iqbal to write and present a paper at the inaugural meeting on
ways to uplift the economic status of the Indian Muslims in Malaysia. Dr. Mohamed Thalha,
then a lecturer at Institute Teknologi MARA, was asked to write and present a paper on the
upliftment of the educational standards of the Indian Muslim students in Malaysia. The
inaugural meeting was held in March 1973 at the old City Hall Building, Jalan Raja, Kuala
Lumpur. The then Menteri Besar of Selangor, Dato’ Haji Harun Bin Idris officiated. The two
papers were presented at the meeting and were well-received by the delegates. Then the
Executive Committee was elected. Tan Sri Dato’ Ubaidulla was elected President, Mohamed
Iqbal as Hon. General Secretary and the late K. Mohamed Haneef as Assistant Secretary.
Both Dr Thalha and I were elected as Committee members together with others.
At the inception there were 11 associations affiliated to PERMIM. One of those was the
Kedah Indian Chamber of Commerce. That was surprising as it was not a Muslim community
social organisation. There were 4 associations from Penang that were affiliated. But two of
the associations were not very active and did not attend PERMIM meetings on a regular
basis. A notable omission was Muslim League Penang, the mother organisation in Penang
and which had a long history. I understood Muslim League Penang had turned down an
invitation to become an affiliate of PERMIM but I did not know the reason why. So effectively
of the 11 organizations that were affiliated to PERMIM at that time only 8 were active
affiliates. The Constitution of PERMIM also had a provision for what was called Direct
Members Organisation (DMO). This provision had been included to make it possible for
those who were not members of any association affiliated to PERMIM to become direct
members of it.
The first meeting of the Executive Council (Exco) was held in April 1973. At that meeting
several preliminary matters were discussed, as is usual at the first meeting of a
newly-elected Council. Then Dr Thalha put forward a proposal to establish a hostel for our
students who came to study at University of Malaya and other colleges in Kuala Lumpur. He
was at that time also a consultant/advisor to Urban Development Authority (UDA). UDA was
building shop houses in SEA Park, Petaling Jaya and he said he could speak to the
Chairman of UDA for PERMIM to buy 4 or 5 shop houses in a row. The ground floors could
be rented out to businesses and the top floors could be converted into a hostel. The rental
from the ground floors should be sufficient to pay the monthly instalments on the loans that
would have to be taken from the bank. All he asked for was approval from the Exco for him
to go ahead with the proposal and for the President to make a call to the Chairman of UDA
making a request to be allowed to buy the units.
Next was a proposal from me. I briefed the Exco about Muslim Education Fund and the
proposal to bring it under the umbrella of PERMIM. I explained that the PERMIM Exco did
not have to do anything and no funds were required from it. It would be run as it had been in
the past few years except that it would be known as the education arm of PERMIM.
The President said that both were good proposals but that they had to be discussed in detail.
Besides some Exco members were not present at the meeting and they, too, had to be given
the opportunity to express their views. So no decision to proceed with the two proposals was
made; instead they were deferred to the following meeting to be discussed further.
Subsequently, I had to go to London in September 1973 to pursue my LL.M. degree and until
that time a second Committee meeting of PERMIM had not been called. So just before I left,
I handed over the entire set up of MEF to Iqbal to carry on in order to facilitate its proposed
takeover by PERMIM. My intention was that the absorption of MEF by PERMIM should
proceed if the matter was brought up when I was away.
I returned to Malaysia after completing my LL.M. studies in October 1974. After enquiries I
learned that in the period from September 1973 to October 1974 no activities had been
undertaken or carried out by PERMIM except for an Executive Committee meeting held in
April 1974. In that meeting two resolutions had been passed: one urging all PERMIM
affiliates to vote for Barisan Nasional in the then forthcoming general elections and the other
exhorting Indian Muslims who were not yet members of any political party to join the
Malaysian Indian Congress.
I also learned upon my return that the Muslim Education Fund that I had founded before I left
for London had been registered as a society. Its name was Tabung Pelajaran Islam (the
Bahasa Melayu version of Muslim Education Fund). I was happy since to me the attainment
of the objective for which the Fund was established was more important than MEF being part
of PERMIM. At a subsequent AGM I was elected as a vice-president and served in that
capacity for a number of years.
The late Haji AMS Jamal Mohamed was President and Ali Abul Hassan Sulaiman was the
Deputy President. Iqbal was the Hon Secretary. The Muslim Education Fund, first registered
as Tabung Pelajaran Islam has undergone a couple of name changes. It was re-named as
Tabung Pedidikan Islam and then as Yayasan Pendidikan Islam. It continues to function
under the last name under the able leadership of Mohamed Iqbal by providing financial
assistance to needy students and conducting career guidance courses. It has also carried
out a number of important projects and organised international conferences over many
years. I believe a whole book has to be written about the work done by the YPI.
After I was elected as President of PERMIM in 1976 I attempted to bring the YPI under
PERMIM as was the original intention. A number of discussions were held between the
Committee of YPI and PERMIM but agreement could not be reached. So the YPI continued
to operate separately from PERMIM.
I then initiated the setting up of an Education Fund within PERMIM. A PERMIM Education
Fund (PEF) was established in late 1970s and many students were given assistance from
the PEF. I am happy to record that some who obtained assistance from the PEF are now
holding important positions with one of them being a well-respected Professor in a
University.
2. THE PERMIM DELEGATES CONFERENCE, 1976
A Delegates Conference (DC) was called for March 1976 by the PERMIM Exco. The DC
was to be held in Ipoh. As required by the Notice, three delegates from the DMO were
selected to attend the DC. Dr Mohamed Ariff, A. Shaik Dawood and I were the three
delegates. A couple of days before the DC Dr Ariff informed me that he could not attend due
to some personal reason. The late Jan Mohamed was nominated in his place. And the day
before the DC A. Shaik Dawood also informed me that he, too, could not come. It was at the
eleventh hour and the DMO seemed to be able to send only two delegates. The late Dr
Hallaj Rahmatullah, a doctor in Government service then, was in Kuala Lumpur at that time
undergoing a Master’s programme at the University of Malaya. When I informed him of the
situation he volunteered to come as a delegate. So on the day of the meeting the three of us
left for Ipoh for the DC.
For President, Tan Sri’s name was immediately proposed and there was no other
nomination. However, Tan Sri said that he did not wish to stand for election as he was rather
busy with his other posts and positions. After a while seeing that nothing was happening,
someone stood up and proposed my name for President and another seconded. As there
was no other name proposed, someone else proposed that the nominations be closed and I
was declared elected as President. Soon after that the three vice Presidents were elected.
When the turn came to elect the Hon. Secretary name after name was proposed but
everyone declined. It appeared that no one wanted to accept the post. Finally, seeing the
predicament, Dr Hallaj Rahmatullah, who had never had any intention to contest for any
post, informed Jan Mohamed that he would be willing to take up the post. Jan Mohamed
then proposed Dr Hallaj’s name and he was duly elected. Mr K. Mohamed Haneef was
elected as Treasurer. The other posts were filled without any fuss. Just before the end of the
meeting, I made a short and faltering acceptance speech, mindful of the gravity of the
burden that had fallen on my shoulders totally unexpectedly.
3. PLANNING PERMIM ACTIVITIES
The registration of PERMIM as a national umbrella body was a major event for the
community. Everyone involved in that endeavour deserves the highest praise. The long-time
aspiration of the bread vendor in Taiping had become a reality. (I use the term ‘bread vendor’
in a respectful sense, to denote the simple man that he was but who had noble ideas for the
betterment of the community.)
There were great expectations by the community. Many people were eager and ready to see
it take off. The two proposals put forward at its first Exco meeting after its inauguration were
indicative of the enthusiasm for and faith in the national organisation. What was handed
down to the new Exco, at the time the new Exco took over in 1976, were three files and a
bank account with about RM530.00 in credit. The registered office was Masjid India Kuala
Lumpur which was also its meeting place.
The tasks and challenges facing me as President had to be seen in the context of the
financial and societal position of the community and the prevailing circumstances in 1976.
PERMIM was not a prominent organisation to the larger community. It was even less known
in government circles and to public officials. Many members of the community who knew
about PERMIM and a number of its affiliates were sceptical about the future of PERMIM.
4. CHARTING PERMIM’S LONG TERM PLANS
Anyone wishing to study the history of PERMIM during the period 1976 -1988 must have a
clear understanding of the community’s overall economic, political and societal situations at
that time. I served as President from March 1976 to October 1988, a period of 12½ years.
Those could be regarded as the formative years of a national level organisation. No
incoming Council of a national organisation, such as PERMIM, with no overall recognition
within the community and outside of it and with no track record of service, could have been
expected to be up and running immediately after its election. It was even more difficult given
that it had been inactive for 3½ years after its inauguration, thus frustrating the high
expectations that members of the community who knew about PERMIM had placed on it.
This had given rise to scepticism and loss of hope in PERMIM. So the task confronting the
new Exco was doubly daunting – it has to begin from scratch and it had to overcome the
indifference of the community towards it.
The first five to six years were its formative and most trying years. There were many
challenges and numerous hurdles. PERMIM was effectively an eight-affiliate organisation
with no track record of service and little resources. Economically the larger community was
generally below middle class level. The well-off members of the community, except for a few,
did not involve themselves in the community affairs and some others did not even consider
themselves as members of the community. So it was an uphill task that the new Exco faced.
It had to win the confidence of the community and that was not easy when the community
was fractured and divergent. Some did not see the need for an organisation such as
PERMIM. There was no real feeling of commonality among the community as a whole – it
was being pulled in many different directions: (i) Indian Muslims who identified themselves
as Indians (i.e. with India)with their families and properties in India and who regarded this
country as a place of sojourn; (ii) those that thought of themselves as Indians in this country
and identified themselves with other Indians in this country (and politically with MIC); (iii)the
Indian Muslims in Malaysia, those who wanted to be identified as Muslims of Indian origin
and who were proud of their status and heritage as Indian Muslims; (iv) those who were not
concerned as how they themselves or anyone else identified them as, they just wanted to be
left alone to do whatever they wanted to do; (v) those who had become assimilated with the
Malay community and who did not identify themselves with the Indian Muslim community
even though they had many relatives among them and (vi) those who were in an uncertain
state of mind as to their identity or did not bother about their status, especially those who
were living in or near the estates and who had adopted certain ways of living and the
customs of the community they were living among. In short, the Indian Muslim community,
such as it was, faced an identity crisis that has not been resolved to this day.
Given the prevailing circumstances, PERMIM could not be doing, whatever it was that it was
doing at that time, that would be right by all those divergent groups: each group had its own
different expectations. No single activity could satisfy all those groups. In those
circumstances, whatever was done or achieved in the name of the community was truly
significant though to those basking in the recognition and status that has been so
painstakingly earned for PERMIM over many trying years, all those years of effort and toil do
not seem to be a big deal.
Even among Indian Muslim organisations there was no real bond; in some cases there were
differences of opinion, if not enmity. This was clearly evident, for example, when Muslim
League Penang, one of the oldest Indian Muslim organisations in the country and which
was, and still is, regarded as the de facto mother organisation of Indian Muslim organisations
in Penang, did not affiliate itself with PERMIM at that time.
The new Exco had nothing to follow through in terms of activities or planned courses of
action. We had to start afresh as though PERMIM were a newly-registered society. Not
having prepared myself for this enormous responsibility and aware of the magnitude of the
task facing me as President, I had to think carefully what I needed to do. So the task
confronting me and the new Exco was formidable – to bring as many as possible of these
divergent groups into the organisation amidst indifference and an apparent lack of trust
among the community towards PERMIM and a somewhat hostile stance by the only political
party representing Indians in this country at that time.
Working within these constraints but never losing hope or courage, for a start I set myself
three main tasks. The first was to strengthen PERMIM, to turn it into a truly national
organisation and to effectively serve the community. The second was to implement what I
had proposed in my working paper on the economic upliftment of the Community that I had
submitted at the inaugural PERMIM Delegates Conference in 1973. And the third was to
acquire permanent premises to serve as the headquarters of PERMIM which I was
convinced was absolutely essential for a national organisation.
The Three Objectives
To achieve the first objective, at the first meeting of the Executive Council after the elections
I proposed to the Council that Council meetings should be held by rotation at the various
towns in the country where there were PERMIM affiliates to be followed by a public meeting.
This was unanimously agreed to by the Exco members.
The second objective was essentially a follow-up of the main proposal in my paper
presented at the PERMIM inaugural meeting held in March 1973. I planned the formation
and registration of a co-operative society. I met with officers of the Co-operative Department
and drafted the By-Laws for submission. I framed the Constitution for the co-op society to be
a national-level, multi-purpose society and applied for its registration.
For the third objective, I decided that PERMIM being a national organisation representing a
community, needed to have its own headquarters building.
First Objective
Each Exco meeting will be hosted by the affiliate concerned and there will be two separate
sessions, one a Council meeting and the other a public meeting to which the community
members will be invited to attend and at which PERMIM’s plans would be explained to them.
The Menteri Besar or Chief Minister or a ranking government leader of the State concerned
would be invited to declare open the public meeting. This plan achieved many things at one
go: the community got to know PERMIM and its leaders, the PERMIM leaders got to know
the members of their affiliates and others members of the community and thirdly the
government leaders at these places also got to know about PERMIM and its leaders.
This plan was welcomed by the affiliates and the public. Typically, when an Exco Meeting
was scheduled in a particular town, I would leave my house after lunch on a Saturday (it was
a 5½-day working week then), go to the houses of Exco members who wished to use my
transport and then drive up to the town. We would arrive late in the evening and start the
Exco meeting after Isha prayers and dinner. The meeting could go on till 12 midnight or even
later. The following morning the public meeting would start at about 9.30 a.m. and end at
lunch time. After lunch we would head back home and be back at work the next day. So the
entire weekend would be taken up in this activity.
Those meetings turned out to be very popular with the affiliates hosting the meeting. There
was a lot of enthusiasm among the members of the affiliate concerned and the community
took on a festive mood. Each affiliate wanted to do better than the previous one and in this
way a friendly competitive spirit was created and camaraderie was established among
members of the various affiliates. Malacca Muslim League, for example, organised their
meetings at Pulau Besar and the delegates enjoyed the boat trips and the sumptuous meals
a great deal. In this way PERMIM came to be accepted by the larger community all over the
country. The public meetings also proved to be very useful in introducing PERMIM to the
government officials in those towns.
Revamping of the Constitution of PERMIM
In tandem with this exposure of PERMIM to the larger community and government circles, I
undertook a major revamp of the Constitution. I found that the original constitution was not
sufficient for PERMIM’s expected role as the national federation of Indian Muslim
organisations and as an umbrella body for Indian Muslims generally. I personally re-wrote
the constitution and among the changes introduced two may be mentioned: (i) the formation
of Youth and Wanita wings in PERMIM and (ii) provisions for the establishment of branches
in areas where there were no Indian Muslim societies. The new constitution when ready was
placed before the delegates at a BDC meeting and was unanimously approved. It was then
submitted to the Registrar of Societies and in due course received his approval.
Following the approval a Youth wing was set up under the leadership of Dato’ Sri Mohamed
Iqbal. It did an excellent job carrying out many projects and activities. This helped to draw
the youth to PERMIM which was its main objective. This wing was active throughout the
term when I was President and continued thereafter.
A Wanita wing was also set up under the leadership of a lady member whose name I cannot
recall. This wing functioned for some years but ceased to be effective after the initial period
of activity, either due to a lack of support from the ladies in the community and/or for other
reasons. It should be remembered that in the 1970s the ladies of the community were not as
forthcoming for social activities and rarely took part in community organisations. However,
the establishment of the Wanita wing should be seen as showing a pathway to the ladies to
become involved in social work. In recent times the community’s ladies have become more
involved in social and political activities. Seen in that light the establishment of the Wanita
wing was a far-sighted if somewhat an ahead-of-its-time initiative.
Branches
Establishment of branches was undertaken soon after the new constitution was approved.
The first branch was set up in Rawang and I had the privilege to declare it open. It
functioned well and gave the small Indian Muslim community in Rawang a platform to do
social work within their own community as well as to have an opportunity to be involved at
the national level activities through their representation in the Exco and attendance at the
Exco meetings held in the various towns.
Soon after that a second branch was set up in Palong, Felda Negeri Sembilan. It is worthy of
note that the request to form a branch came from the Indian Muslims in that area who had
heard about PERMIM and its activities.
At the same time we worked towards bringing in more of the registered Indian Muslim
societies into PERMIM. Kedah Indian Chamber of Commerce which had been admitted as a
member in 1973 was persuaded to withdraw. Thereafter Kedah Muslim League was
admitted as an affiliate. Perhaps the biggest ‘catch’ was Muslim League Penang. As I have
mentioned earlier, this organisation had declined an invitation to join PERMIM in the
beginning. However after the new Exco took office we decided that it was important for
Muslim League Penang to become affiliated as it was a mother organisation for Indian
Muslim societies in Penang. So we worked on it and finally convinced it to join which it did.
Likewise other societies were gradually brought in. At the time I retired as President there
were 28 affiliates from the effective 8 affiliates when the new Exco took over. If my
recollection is not wrong, there were very few Indian Muslim registered societies, if at all any,
that were not affiliated to PERMIM at that time. In other words, all Indian Muslim registered
societies existing at that time were affiliated to PERMIM. In the 1990s and 2000s a number
of new societies were registered and I believe they subsequently became affiliated to
PERMIM.
In this way the foundation was laid for PERMIM to become a truly representative
national-level social organisation for the Indian Muslim community.
Second Objective
During the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s Indian Muslims generally were small businessmen,
traders or stallholders. There were a handful of medium-sized and large businesses. There
was a small but growing number of professionals among the community. But the community
was known for its hard work, toiling in their businesses for long hours every day. They did
not have (or rather, one should say, make) much time to be with their families and did not go
on holidays. Yet their income from their businesses was not commensurate with the efforts
which they put in.
A significant number of persons in the educated group often kept themselves away from the
general community. They somehow felt that once they became graduates they were different
from the others. They did not participate in the community functions that were held.
Community gatherings of a social nature were rare other than wedding functions or
funerals.
There were some big businesses in times past but they had dwindled and disappeared. The
pre-eminent position enjoyed by Indian Muslim traders had been lost. Many reasons could
be attributed to the then condition of the community. I do not delve into the reasons for that
state of affairs. That requires a lot of research and critical analysis. That would be a major
undertaking in itself and there are very good lessons to be learnt. But a note here on the
reasons will be an uniformed opinion and irrelevant.
What the community needed, in my view, was some form of action to give it an economic
boost. I had stated in my paper presented at the PERMIM inaugural meeting that a
combination of the business acumen of the community and the access to capital available to
the Malay community could give rise to a mutually beneficial business relationship between
these two communities. Such cooperation, if properly managed, would have tremendous
potential for the economic betterment of both communities. No action to study that proposal
further was taken by the Exco of 1973.
When I became the President, it naturally fell on me to put that plan into action. No one
remembered that proposal let alone urge or compel me to carry it through. I decided to take
action. I decided that the best way to do so was to have a co-operative society registered. As
I have mentioned earlier I drafted the Bye-laws for a national level and multi-purpose
co-operative society. We decided to name the co-operative society as “Koperasi PERMIMA
Malaysia Berhad”. Although the co-operative society would be an independent body, we
wanted the name to reflect its connection to PERMIM.
When I went to see the relevant department I took along the late Br Jan Mohamed Ismail.
The officers at the department were initially reluctant to approve a national level
multi-purpose co-operative society. They asked us why we needed a national level and
multi-purpose co-operative society. They asked us to tell them what we intended for the
co-operative society to do and they would approve a society to do that activity within a
defined geographical area. I explained to them that PERMIM was a national level
organisation and that we had plans for the co-operative society to enter into joint ventures
with the Malay community and others which would mean establishing businesses or
undertaking projects all over the country. After a lengthy pleading and persuasion they
relented and agreed to approve our application. Shortly thereafter we received the
registration certificate.
The Ex-co had to decide on the persons who would be directors of the line-up for the
co-operative society. There would be a chairman and 11 directors. Many Ex-co members
wanted me to become the chairman. I told them I was already holding an important position
as President of PERMIM and so I did not intend to take up the chairman’s post: I did not
want to hold two important posts concurrently. Although there were persistent requests for
me to re-consider my decision I stood firm. Besides, I told them, PERMIM should bring in a
person who was more qualified to take on that job.
We decided on Prof. Datuk Dr. Mohamed Ariff Abdul Kareem, who was a renowned
economist and Professor of Economics at University of Malaya, for the post and convinced
him to accept it. We also brought in others from the banking and business community who
were not then associated with PERMIM as directors of the co-operative society as well as a
couple of them to represent the affiliates. Dato’ Sri Mohamed Iqbal and I were also
nominated to be on the Board.
On 26th December 1976, within nine months of the new Exco coming into office, we held the
inaugural meeting of PERMIMA co-op. The ground floor of the KL Indian Muslim Mosque
was packed to capacity and overflowing. The chairman and directors were formally elected.
A great deal of enthusiasm was created.
After the launch the Board got down to business. A lot of planning was done. Among the
plans were the acquisition of Indian Muslim businesses that were about to change hands,
identifying potential joint venture projects, assisting Indian Muslim businesses to obtain bank
loans, applying to the government for taxi licenses to be distributed among Indian Muslims
and many others. A series of meetings was arranged and held in the major towns to explain
the objectives of the co-operative society. The response was good but guarded. Alas as is
often the case with such initiatives, some unknown forces within the community began to
sow the seeds of doubt. As a result, one member who had subscribed for shares worth
RM10,000.00 (a relatively big amount in those days) applied to withdraw RM9,000.00 shortly
after he had subscribed. The co-operative society immediately refunded the amount to him. I
believe, though I do not have any specific proof, that many other intending subscribers were
dissuaded from subscribing or had doubts about the co-operative society created in their
minds.
Despite these setbacks the co-operative society raised about RM100,000.00 during the
initial stages. After a few years, the chairmanship was taken over by Br Jan Mohamed
Ismail. After that the late Dato’ Shaik Allaudin bin Mohamed Ismail of Penang was elected as
Chairman and Dato’ Habib Mohamed of Habib Jewels as Deputy Chairman. The
headquarters moved to Penang and has remained there since. Meanwhile after a couple of
years I gave up my position on the Board to concentrate on my PERMIM activities.
Third Objective
It was my firm belief that a national organisation must have, for its status and continued
growth and strength, a headquarters building of its own. Besides being a permanent place
from which to carry on its activities, it will be a symbol and source of pride for the community.
Whilst many affiliate societies of PERMIM had their own buildings which served as their
bases of operations and meeting places, there was none for PERMIM. In fact there was no
building for the Indian Muslim community at the national level. There has never been one.
So I had set as one of my initial objectives the acquisition of PERMIM’s own premises.
Given PERMIM’s nascent life at that time and the overall economic position of the
community, realisation of that objective was not going to be easy. But a start had to me made
somewhere. At about that time the Selangor State Government was developing through
Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor (PKNS) (the Selangor State Development
Corporation) the area later to become known as Kelana Jaya. During that time my legal firm
did legal work for PKNS and the firm had a good working relationship with that Corporation. I
personally had a close and trusted relationship with its senior officers as well. So I made an
application on behalf of PERMIM for a piece of land. Given the position, particularly the
financial position, of PERMIM at that time, I only applied for half an acre of land, even then
with some reservations as to whether PERMIM would be able to raise the amount to pay for
the land. In due course, a piece of land, measuring 22,000 sq. ft. was allotted to PERMIM at
a price of RM4.00 per sq. ft. The total cost was thus RM88,000.00 odd.
When the letter of allotment was received, the task of raising the amount to pay the
purchase price had to be tackled. A Building Fund was set up and donations were collected.
For this purpose the Exco made visits to the towns where there were affiliates and appealed
to them for donations. At each of those meetings I, as the President, gave a solemn
assurance on behalf of PERMIM that as the property that was being acquired would be the
first ever property being acquired by the Indian Muslim community for a national organisation
in the history of Indian Muslims in this country, it would remain as PERMIM property. It was
emphasised that even though Indian Muslims had built mosques and madrasahs in the
central parts of almost all the towns and places they had settled down in this country and
many affiliates had their own buildings, there was none at a national level. So the building
that was to be erected on the land to be purchased would have a historical significance and
be a symbol of and for the community.
People were enthusiastic about the proposal and they donated various amounts, ranging
from RM 10.00 to RM50 to RM100. They were ordinary wage earners whose wages were
perhaps RM150 to RM200 per month. Yet their community spirit was high and they wanted
to donate whatever they could afford. I have often referred to one particular donation in my
later speeches. There was a letter from a port worker in Penang who sent in RM88.00. He
explained in the letter that he would have contributed the total purchase price of
RM88,000.00 if he had the means but RM88.00 was all that he could spare. It was a
poignant letter and reflected an undying community spirit. Such was the spirit!
Some of the better-off people who had some connection with the community donated more,
RM500 or RM1,000.00. But some rich people and some others who were prominent, even
those who had been involved in PERMIM earlier, did not contribute any amount at all. They
probably were uninterested in the whole idea or did not think that PERMIM at that time would
have been able to raise the necessary funds to purchase the property. I do not wish to name
names as that would serve no purpose. After all, contributions were voluntary.
The amount raised by the means set out above was not sufficient to meet the cost of the
land. The Exco pressed on nevertheless. I spoke to Mr AVM Hajamaideen and Mr AVM
Jaffardeen, who were then directors of Razik Fareed International Sdn. Bhd., a prominent
business concern at that time about the purchase of the land and the shortage of the needed
funds. They were also my clients. They were appreciative of the idea and agreed to assist.
They contributed a good amount themselves (the exact figure I cannot recall now) and also
collected donations from their customers. In the end they contributed/collected about
30-40% of the total cost. One Mr Abdul Jameehu, who was then working in a pharmacy in
Singapore, talked to his boss and obtained a contribution of RM5,000.00. By all these means
the full amount needed was collected. The total purchase price was paid in full. The amount
left over was kept in the Building Fund.
The land was State land and an official land survey had not yet been done. So no titles to
the individual plots of land had been issued. Accordingly no development could have been
carried out on the land. So although the full purchase price had been paid PERMIM had not
been issued the title to the land. No quit rent and assessment charges were payable yet
since the amounts of those charges depended on the exact land area of each plot which had
not then been determined. The position was such that although the land had been allotted to
PERMIM and the full purchase price had been paid no development could be carried out.
Anticipating the issuance of title in due course, PERMIM went ahead to have drawn up a
concept plan for the proposed development. Mr AVM Hajamaideen was appointed as the
Building Sub-Committee Chairman. Dr Mohamed Thalha, who was a lecturer in town
planning at ITM (as UiTM was then known), arranged for his students to draw up the plan.
Initially a four-storey building was planned with a multi-purpose hall and an office on the
ground floor, one floor of rentable office space and the third and fourth floors for a
commercial school. But no detailed plans were drawn up as it would have been premature.
This plan was displayed in the PERMIM office for members to provide feedback.
I would like to state here that simultaneously with the plans being drawn up I proposed to the
Exco that a commercial school could be either set up by PERMIM through a
PERMIM-incorporated company or some members of the community could undertake the
project to be situated in the 2 floors earmarked for that purpose in the concept plan. The
details were to be worked out at the appropriate time. These proposals were left at the
concept stage as nothing could move without the title to the land which had yet to be issued
by the land office.
After a couple of years, as a result of further discussions and views from members and
affiliates the concept plan was amended and a new concept plan was drawn up. These
plans were kept at the PERMIM office until detailed plans could be drawn up later upon the
receipt of the title. As no development could be carried out, the vacant land was let out as a
car park at a monthly rental of RM3,000.00. That was the only asset of PERMIM that
produced some income for PERMIM.
As I have explained above, the EXCO could not proceed with any development on the land,
since no plans for building approval could have been submitted to the local authorities
without a land title being available. It is a fact that the title had not been issued even as late
as 1988 when I gave up the Presidency at the BDC held that year. The title was only
transferred to the Trustees on 8 September 1994, that is to say, six years after I had stepped
down as President. PERMIM having its own building has been one of my primary objectives
as I have explained earlier. That building was to be constructed on the land that was
purchased and was to stand as a symbol of pride for the community. That was the pledge I
had made to the contributors when collecting donations for the purchase of the land.
Excos that came into office after my term followed up on the plan after the title was issued.
The title was issued in 1994 during the time when Dato’ Shahul Hamid was President.
Shahul Hamid asked for and took the concept Building plans from Hajamaideen. The
building project had been discussed at several Exco and even BDC meetings after my
retirement. Besides, Building Sub-committees under different Chairmen had also been
appointed. In subsequent years, the Building sub-committee under Haji Anver Hussain had
held negotiations with a development company to put up a multi-storey building on the land.
That plan was rejected by a EDC held on 17.09.2001. Subsequently during the Presidency
of Dato’ Jamarul Khan detailed building plans were drawn up. With this plan in hand I
arranged for the then Building Sub-Committee members to meet with a bank to arrange for a
financing facility for the intended development. I went along with the members to meet the
bank. That application was not successful as the financing facility application was for 100%
of the building cost which the bank was not willing to grant. It would have approved a facility
of 70-80% of the cost; in other words PERMIM needed to have available 20-30% of the cost.
At that point PERMIM was not able to collect the requisite amount. That proposal could not
therefore be proceeded with.
The building proposal was again deliberated at a BDC held during the term of the
Presidency of Dato’ Syed Ibrahim when certain decisions were taken. I was not privy to
those deliberations and decisions. But the fact is the building proposal was discussed.
5. Other Projects And Activities
Besides the three projects outlined above, which in my view, helped to lay a solid foundation
for PERMIM to become stable, strong and a truly effective national organisation, many other
projects and activities were carried out. Some of the major ones are set out below, though
not in the order they were undertaken.
(1) PERMIM Meeting with Tun Dr Mahathir
Soon after the new Exco took office in 1976 it made an appointment to meet with Tun Dr
Mahathir Mohamad, who had just been appointed as Deputy Prime Minister after Tun
Hussein Onn became the Prime Minister upon the demise of Tun Abdul Razak. Dr Mahathir
was also the Education Minister. The objective of the meeting was to discuss the problems
faced by the community and to seek solutions for them.
After we had secured the appointment we planned for the meeting very carefully. Dr
Mohamed Ariff was to lead the discussion on the economic position of the Indian Muslims in
this country, Dr Mohamed Thalha on the educational issues and I on the political and social
issues confronting the community. Tun Mahathir’s office was then at Federal House and a
delegation of about 10 PERMIM members went to see him there. The time allotted to us was
20 minutes.
At the beginning on behalf of PERMIM I handed over a cheque to Dr. Mahathir as a
contribution from PERMIM for the Tun Abdul Razak Foundation which had been set up in
memory of the late Prime Minister. Then the discussions began and ranged over many
areas. Dr Mahathir listened very carefully when the issues facing the community were
explained to him. He then gave his views. He pointed out the shortcomings of the community
and lamented the fact that many leading Indian Muslim businesses had dwindled and some
had even closed down. He pointed out the political realities in the country at that time and
gave his views on how the community should face up to the situation. He was happy to see
many professionals in the delegation and noted the fact that the educated and professional
Indian Muslims were involved in community organisations.
The discussions were open and frank and everyone from PERMIM was satisfied with the
meeting. When we left his office we found that we had been inside for one hour and twenty
minutes and a delegation from University of Malaya that had an appointment to see him had
been waiting for more than an hour. It was perhaps the first time that a delegation from a
national level Indian Muslim organisation had met with the Deputy Prime Minster of the
country.
At subsequent PERMIM meetings I conveyed Dr Mahathir’s views to the members and the
affiliates and members tried to follow his advice.
(2) PERMIM Education Fund
Having been involved in education projects and assisting needy students over many years
before becoming PERMIM President, one of my other projects was the establishment of a
PERMIM Education Fund. But before doing that we wanted to have a dialogue with Tabung
Pelajaran Islam (Muslim Education Fund) with a view to bringing it under PERMIM, which
was the original idea. We had two meetings but could not reach agreement on that.
PERMIM then set up an Education Fund and started giving out assistance. There were
many that received grants from the Fund and, as I have said earlier, and one of them is
today a well-respected Professor at a local university. There were others who are now in
various professions and businesses. It is sad to note, however, most of those who had been
helped never came forward after their graduation and when they were working to assist
PERMIM in its activities, even in its educational activities. Whilst some repay the loans a
majority of them do not. This is a common phenomenon with most education funds. Though
educated and in professions or businesses these persons who obtained assistance in their
times of need turn their back on the organisation that helped them. Little do they realise that
by not repaying the loans they are depriving other needy students who would be in need of
assistance to pursue their studies. They have become detached from the community’s
social organisations and the larger community generally.
(3) PERMIM Publication – Nam Kural
The Tamil daily papers of the day were not favourably disposed towards PERMIM, perhaps
as a supportive gesture for the opposition being shown towards it by the Indian political
leaders of the day. So activities carried out by PERMIM did not get the coverage that would
have been expected from a neutral daily honestly reporting events and activities within the
larger Indian community. There was thus a need to find an alternative means of publishing
news and information about PERMIM is particular and the Indian Muslim community in
general. The Exco decided to publish a monthly magazine. A publication sub-committee was
set up with Mr AVM Hajamaideen as the Chairman. Br Kavingar Seeni Naina Mohamed (the
renowned Tamil language poet of Malaysia) who was an active member of PERMIM and
who had served in different posts in it, was appointed its editor. The magazine was given the
name Nam Kural (Our Voice). He did an excellent job wholly voluntarily and without any
remuneration whatsoever. People who knew about his situation then would appreciate that it
was a great sacrifice for him to devote the amount of time needed to produce the magazine
every month. He was assisted by an assistant editor who was paid a small amount of
remuneration. We also appointed a sales representative on a commission basis.
Nam Kural carried on publication for 8 years which by any account was an achievement for
an Indian Muslim organisation. But a magazine can only be financially viable if it received a
continuous stream of paid advertisements. Among the Indian Muslim community at that time
there were not that many business concerns that were in a position to advertise regularly in
the magazine. PERMIM was not in a financial position to continue to subsidise the cost of
production any longer. After a long struggle for survival, Nam Kural ceased publication.
(4) Penerbitan PERMIM Sdn Bhd
There was also a proposal for PERMIM to venture into other publications and book
distribution business. The idea was to import Tamil and English language Islamic books and
sell or distribute them in Malaysia. Simultaneously book launches and even book publication
could be undertaken. Towards this end a wholly PERMIM-owned company with the name
Penerbitan PERMIM Sdn Bhd was registered under the Companies Act 1965. However
owing to various factors the intended businesses were not undertaken although a couple of
local book launches were carried out.
(5) PERMIM Office Premises
As PERMIM began to grow in strength with the establishment of the Youth and Wanita wings
and branches and its activities became more frequent, many meetings had to be held. There
was no regular place to hold these meetings and they were held at various venues. The
need for a permanent place was acutely felt. It was discussed at the Exco meetings and
finally the Exco decided to rent premises. A flat was identified and rented in Malayan
Mansion in Jalan Masjid India, Kuala Lumpur and it was remodelled into an office. From then
on it served as the PERMIM office and meetings were held at that premises.
After a couple of years a flat just two doors away from the existing premises became
available for purchase. The Exco felt, urged on mainly by the Direct members, that that
premises should be purchased by PERMIM. The asking price for the flat was RM75,000.00.
But PERMIM did not have the necessary funds to buy it. There was a sum left in the Building
Fund after the purchase price for the land had been paid in full but that was not enough.
Some members agreed to contribute towards the purchase price of the flat but there was still
a shortfall of about RM25,000.00. Dato’ Shaik Allaudin graciously agreed to grant an
interest-free loan to PERMIM of the amount of the shortfall. With the purchase price of
RM75,000.00 thus becoming available, PERMIM bought the flat to serve as its office
premises.
(6) PERMIM on the Government Protocol List
Within a few years of its operations, PERMIM came to be recognised among Government
circles as an organisation representing Indian Muslims. Its name was placed in the protocol
list and the main officials of PERMIM began to receive invitations to government functions,
such as the King’s birthday events, Merdeka Day celebrations, Maulidur Rasul functions and
others. This was testimony that PERMIM was being acknowledged as doing a credible job of
representing Indian Muslims in this country.
(7) Indian Muslim Programmes on RTM
In those days it was the view of PERMIM affiliates and members that sufficient broadcast
time was not being given to Islamic programmes on Radio Television Malaysia. So a
delegation from PERMIM met with the Director of Broadcasting and made representations to
him to increase the air time. This was done.
(8) Representation on the Censorship Board
During that time some Tamil films produced in India had scenes that depicted Indian Muslims
in a bad light or was otherwise offensive towards Indian Muslims. These films had passed
the censorship board in Malaysia and were being shown in the local theatres. PERMIM
made representations about this matter and secured a seat in the censorship committee for
Tamil films. Haji K. Mohamed Haneef, the Treasurer of PERMIM, was nominated as the
member representing PERMIM on the committee.
(9) Indian Muslim Trade Associations and Muslim Chamber of Commerce
It is a known fact that the Indian Chamber of Commerce in Malaysia was established by
Indian Muslim traders. They headed and ran the Chamber for a long time together with other
Indian traders. However as time passed and the number of Indian Muslim businesses went
down and correspondingly the number of other Indian business establishments grew, the
running of the Indian Chamber of Commerce gradually began to change hands. The number
of Indian Muslim representatives on the Committee also dwindled. This led to a situation
where problems affecting businesses run mainly by Indian Muslims, such as
money-changing businesses, were not given due attention by the Chamber. So Indian
Muslim establishments were left to deal with the problems on their own. To make matters
worse, sadly there was not much co-operation among Indian Muslim traders themselves.
This problem was brought to my attention by some money-changers when they faced certain
restrictions imposed by Bank Negara Malaysia on the amount of foreign currency each
money-changer could maintain at any one time. This hampered their businesses and some
of them had been caught having more than the authorised amount. They had to be careful
not to exceed the prescribed limit of foreign currency in their possession and this was not
always possible. I assisted them in making representations to Bank Negara Malaysia,
pointing out the difficulty faced by the money-changers and how they were not able to meet
the demands of tourists wanting to change their foreign currency into Malaysian ringgit with
such restrictions.
I gave this problem deeper thought and decided that a long-term solution had to be found. I
also realised that other businesses, such as retailers, booksellers, restaurant owners, would
also be facing problems which they could not solve individually; and there was no
mechanism for them to meet and discuss their problems and work out solutions collectively.
One of the persons I had persuaded to come into the PERMIM fold was the late Dato’ Adam
Ahad. He was in the money changing business. In fact he was the one who brought the
problem faced by money-changers to my attention. I discussed the matter with him and
suggested that the money-changers should form a trade organisation. He agreed.
I then presented my proposal to PERMIM Exco. I explained the need for trade-based
associations so that there could be a common platform where problems confronting them
could be discussed, collective action taken or representations to the relevant authorities
could be made. I further told them that the bigger objective was to form a Muslim Chamber
of Commerce when a sufficient number of Indian Muslim trade-based associations had been
registered. The PERMIM Exco unanimously approved this proposal.
I drafted the constitution for the Malaysian Muslim Money-changers Association (MMMCA).
A pro-tem committee was elected and in due course the Association was registered. The
inaugural meeting was held at the Raintree Club in Kuala Lumpur in 1989 shortly after I had
stepped down from the Presidency. I was given the honour to officiate at the inauguration
which I was happy to do. It was a matter of immense satisfaction for me to see that my
proposal had become a reality. The Association has over the years been doing a good job
looking after the interests of money-changers.
It is possible that many money-changers, including those now in the Committee, would not
know the history of the Association.
(10) Other Indian Muslim Trade Associations
Following on the MMMCA, other trade-based associations have since been formed, among
them the Muslim Restaurant Owners Association. It is heartening to note, notwithstanding
some internal problems within the Association, that the Association has earned recognition
for itself. It has become a norm for the President of the Association for the time being to be
interviewed by the press and electronic media whenever issues arise involving restaurants,
e.g. the prices of food and drinks. It is important that people are made aware of the origins
and history of the very idea.
(11) Muslim Chamber of Commerce
It is another matter of pride and satisfaction that the Muslim Chamber of Commerce has
been formed. Indian Muslim traders now have a vehicle through which their collective voices
and opinions on matters affecting them can be heard and their rights can be claimed.
(12) Performing Hajj According to the Hanafi Madzhab Rules
A majority of Indian Muslims in Malaysia belong to the Hanafi madzhab, as do the Muslims
in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The vast majority of Muslims in Malaysia
belong to the Shafi’e madzhab. Tabung Haji, the Malaysian agency that is responsible for
organising travel and all other arrangements for intending Hajj pilgrims, naturally arranges it
according to the tenets of the Shafi’e madzhab. Although in essential aspects there are not
many differences between the methods of performing Hajj by the Hanafi and Shafi’e
madzhahib, there are some aspects that Muslims of a particular madzhab would like to
follow as prescribed by that madzhab. For instance, it is recommended in the Hanafi
madzhab that pilgrims should stay for a number of nights in Mina before proceeding to
Arafah as part of the Hajj ritual. This is not compulsory for pilgrims of the Shafi’e madzhab.
Some members of PERMIM belonging to the Hanafi madzhab made a request to me to do
something about this. So I went to see the officials at Tabung Haji and had several
discussions with them. I requested that arrangements be made to accommodate the
reasonable request of Hanafi Muslims to carry out the Hajj rituals according to the tenets of
that madzhab. After due deliberation, Tabung Haji agreed to the request and wrote an official
letter to PERMIM to convey the decision. That was in 1988. As that was the first year the
proposal was being implemented it was in a way exploratory. They agreed to arrange
separate transport for Hanafi Muslims to travel to Mina, to stay the required number of nights
there and then to proceed to Arafah. As a long-term measure they agreed to make other
necessary arrangements and were even willing to allocate certain Hajj flights exclusively for
Hanafi pilgrims if there were sufficient numbers.
In 1988 by the time those arrangements with Tabung Haji were finalised and announced,
many Hanafi Muslims in Malaysia had already made bookings for the Tabung Haji packages
and so were too late to go under the new arrangements. I was one of those who had made
an early booking with Tabung Haji to perform the Hajj in 1988 under the “Mekkah Hotel”
package. So there were only 18 Indian Muslim pilgrims who signed up for the new “Hanafi”
package. A seminar on the Hajj rituals for the pilgrims was held at the PERMIM premises.
Among other things, Tabung Haji agreed that in the future the seminars would be arranged
by Tabung Haji itself as it does for its other packages. So in 1988 for the first time a batch of
18 Indian Muslim pilgrims performed the Hajj under the new arrangements.
1988 was the year that I stepped down from the Presidency of PERMIM. Unfortunately this
arrangement was not followed through in the following years and the scheme which was
worked out after lengthy discussions with Tabung Haji was left to fizzle out.
(13) Bantuan Hari Raya – Assistance to the Needy During Ramadhan
There were in the 1980s and before (and I believe there still are) many Indian Muslim
families that are below the poverty line. These families are those with single mothers, where
the husband/father had either passed away or is struck with a chronic illness and unable to
work, or whose income was not sufficient to maintain the family. Solving these problems was
a long-term plan of the Government. But it was felt that something ought to be done to bring
some cheer into the families during the festive seasons, particularly the Eid’l Fitr (Hari Raya
Puasa) celebrations. In 1986 I proposed to the Exco that PERMIM should arrange for
assistance to be given to such needy families. The Exco welcomed and supported the
proposal. So in the month of Ramadhan 1986 we set about collecting donations either in
cash or kind (rice packets, milk, sugar and other foodstuff) from donors. We then invited
needy families to register with PERMIM to receive such aid. When the statistics of each
family was known we bought cloth and other wearing apparel, such as sarong, batik, etc. to
be distributed. A few days before Eid we arranged for a simple ceremony for the distribution
of these items together with some cash for each family. The then Chief Imam of the Indian
Muslim Mosque, Kuala Lumpur, Moulavi Shaikh Alaudeen Baqvi, was invited as the chief
guest to hand over the items to the families.
The sight of these people, some infirm, some on crutches and others with signs of
deprivation clearly showing, receiving these gifts with much gratitude was a moving scene,
with tears rolling down the eyes of many PERMIM members involved in the whole exercise.
It was the first time, I believe, that an Indian Muslim social organisation had carried out such
an activity. Such assistance was arranged to be given in the following years when I was still
President. A Federal Minister was invited to deliver the items in each of those years.
To the credit of succeeding Excos this event has been successfully undertaken and done
every year since then and it has become one of the defining activities of PERMIM during
Ramadhan. All the Excos and the persons who had worked tirelessly for these events
deserve the highest praise.
(14) PERMIM Long-term Action Plan – the “Seeni Plan”
In the many years that I have been President and having been to all towns and areas where
PERMIM had a presence as well as to other places in Malaysia and having talked with
numerous Indian Muslim societies and social workers, I had a fairly good picture of the
overall economic and social conditions of the greater Indian Muslim community. In fact these
issues were discussed at almost every Exco meeting of PERMIM and of course at its BDCs.
The societies functioning in the various towns and places did whatever was within their
means to deal with the many problems faced by the community. But all that was not enough.
A more concrete long-term plan was required. Seeni Naina Mohamed, who by the early
1980s had been elected as a Vice President of PERMIM, had by his own interactions with
the community at large and with his unique position as the Hon. Editor of Nam Kural had a
more intimate idea about the community’s situation at that time, the problems it was facing
and also its expectations of PERMIM. So he volunteered to draft a plan for the development
of the community. PERMIM Exco gladly accepted the offer.
After several months of thought and planning and writing, Seeni produced a blue print. It was
a long-term and comprehensive plan. It was presented to the Exco which endorsed and
adopted it. The plan was popularly called the “Seeni Plan”, ‘Seeni’ representing the first
name of the author as well as lending a sweet taste to the Plan – the meaning of the word in
Tamil being sugar. No plan of that depth and scope had ever been produced for the
community before.
The Exco decided to present the Plan at a public meeting to which all members of the
community would be invited. The date was 5th May 1985 and the gathering was held at the
City Hall Auditorium at Jalan Raja, Kuala Lumpur. On that day the auditorium was packed to
capacity and many more were standing along the aisles and outside the auditorium. It was a
whole day meeting and many speakers, PERMIM members and others, spoke. They
expressed their views that this kind of action plan ought to have been put in place many
years ago. All of them welcomed the initiative taken by PERMIM in the matter and
congratulated the author for the time he had taken to produce such a comprehensive plan.
The Plan was unanimously endorsed and the general feeling was that finally a concrete plan
of action for the community’s betterment had been produced.
Drawing up the plan was only the first step. The real test was in its implementation. It fell on
the shoulders of PERMIM to execute it. It was not something that could have been done in a
year or two or even 5 years. It required the support and co-operation of all affiliates of
PERMIM and of the community at large.
At the Exco meeting immediately after the gathering a decision was made to carry out an
informal census of the geographical distribution of the Indian Muslim population in this
country, which was one of the first recommendations in the Plan. A sub-committee was set
up to carry out that exercise. They started work on it but the progress was a little slow, given
the nature of the task and its wide scope. The other recommendations were to be
implemented over a period of time. Unfortunately, the implementation of the Plan was not
pursued by the succeeding Excos. I believe the Seeni Plan ought to be revived and revised
where necessary and implemented as a long term solution to the community’s problems.
(15) MEETINGS WITH FOREIGN VISITORS
From time to time Indian Muslim leaders and others, such as political leaders, authors and
ulema, from India and other countries visited Malaysia. PERMIM made it a point to meet with
those visitors, honour them with a public luncheon or dinner and get them to address the
community members. In this way a close rapport was established between them and
PERMIM and its leaders. Many such meetings were held over the years.
The foregoing are some of the major plans and events that were implemented during my
term as President. There were many other events and happenings of a regular nature that
are not recorded here. But from what is outlined above the readers will have an idea of the
work that was done by the Excos from 1976 to 1988, from the time PERMIM was a
little-known organisation to the position it had been brought to in 1988 amidst numerous
hurdles, tribulations, hostility and indifference.
6. BIENNIAL DELEGATES CONFERRENCE IN 1988
Under the Constitution PERMIM holds a general body meeting of its affiliates once every two
years termed as the Biennial Delegates Conference. The BDC is the supreme body in
PERMIM. At each BDC elections are held for the Executive Council positions in PERMIM.
During my term as PERMIM President six BDCs (other than the one held in Ipoh in 1976)
were held, i.e. in 1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1986 and 1988. At each of the first five BDCs I
was re-elected as President unopposed. Some months before the BDC was to be held in
1988 I had announced my intention not to seek re-election. Some members immediately
urged me to carry on saying that there was a lot more work yet to be done and that there
should be continuity in the leadership. A group of six or seven members, mainly from the
DMO, came to see me in my house to persuade me to continue. They impressed upon me
the same reasons why I should carry on as the others. I could clearly see the earnestness
and sincerity in their request. However, I explained to them that there will always be more
work to be done for an organisation like PERMIM. I had served for 12½ years as President
and that was a long time. Others should be given a chance to lead the organisation so that
new ideas and vitality could be injected into the organisation. I thanked them for their kind
thoughts and confidence in my leadership but politely told them that I would like to step
down.
So at the BDC held in 1988 I stepped down as President and Dato’ Shaik Allaudin was
elected as the new President and Dato’ Mohamed Iqbal as the Deputy President. That was
the beginning of another new chapter in the history of PERMIM.